In the latest New Zealand Journal of Employment Relations the following topics are covered. If you wish to read the entire articles please find out more about subscribing to the NZJER by clicking here.

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Knowledge and skill ‘down on the farm’:
Skill formation in New Zealand’s agriculture sector

Nicky Murray ٭

Abstract

Skill formation is a crucial feature of the broader employment relations landscape. There is a growing recognition within the agriculture sector that good education and training practices are an important part of the solutions to many of the challenges facing farming. The New Zealand agriculture sector is defined by particular labour market and employment relations issues, which must be understood in an historical context. These factors have implications for skill formation in agriculture. This paper provides a brief history of labour market issues within the agricultural sector, before discussing the current agricultural training situation. Canterbury dairy-farming is used as a case study.
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Improving Employment Relationships: findings from learning interventions in farm employment 

Ruth Nettle, Mark Pain & John Petheram*

Abstract

This article reports on research investigating the extent to which “learning interventions” can improve farm employment relationships.  A learning intervention is a designed social process to support a relatively permanent change in behaviour, with the emphasis being on change rather than acquiring new skills alone.  Industry, government or small business agencies often invest in interventions to minimise employment turnover and improve employment relations.  This investment often involves employer training in HRM procedures, employee skills training, or an industrial relations focus involving information and advocacy.  In this article, such interventions in the farm sector are seen to fall short in addressing and supporting the significant cultural change required on the part of farm employment participants for effective employment relationships (eg. embedded attitudes and customs about farm work and employment conditions that work against effective working relationships).  This signals the need for different approaches to support change in farm employment.  The article outlines the design, implementation and results from two case studies of learning interventions to support dairy farm employment in Victoria, Australia.  The first case involved a group of farm employers; the second case involved three groups of farm employers and their employees.  Both cases involved participants working on improving farm employment outcomes over a period of 9-15 months.  Findings from the case studies suggest that learning interventions foster critical reflection on employment expectations, and highlight how current behaviour in employment situations impacts employment outcomes.  Further, learning interventions support different action in employment (changed behaviour).  These findings support earlier research that identified the important role attitudes and values played in hindering improved employment.  Learning interventions therefore represent a breakthrough for catalysing employment change.  However, they also require appropriate facilitation as well as ongoing support to ensure the change is embedded in workplace practice.  There are also limits to the extent to which learning interventions can effectively support improvement in employment and these are discussed.
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Meat Industry Unions, Industry Restructuring, and Employment Relations Change in New Zealand and Australia

Marjorie A. Jerrard*

Abstract

Change has been an ongoing process in the meat processing industries of New Zealand and Australia. It has been driven by a number of external and internal factors such as market demand, seasonality, and competitiveness which require industry parties to strategically respond in order to remain viable. Arguably, in both countries, the meat industry trade unions have faced greater challenges because their situation was compounded by rounds of legislative change. Consequently, after two decades of industry restructuring and employment relations change, the unions can be seen as survivors in the industry and the employers as the winners.
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